Albus Oculi
by Bluebird5555
Summary: Something is stirring, deep in the heart of Minecraft, awakened from its slumber to fight an ancient injustice. As the legacy of a ruthless Overlord sweeps the land, Sky and his friends find themselves entangled in the midst of a centuries-old war with no easy way out. Rated T for violence, blood, and mild language.
1. Prologue

**Welcome to my very first fanfiction! Actually, it's not the first I've written, but the first I've ever published. Hope you enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Minecraft or the Youtubers in this story. I only own this story, my OCs, and the computer I'm using right now.**

**The characters in this story are in no way representative of the real Youtubers, and are instead representative of their Minecraft skins, hence the use of their Minecraft usernames instead of the Youtubers' real names.  
**

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_"Never does the human soul appear so strong as when it foregoes revenge and dares to forgive an injury.__" ~Edwin Hubbell Chapin  
_

Prologue

Two men stood facing each other in an immense stone cavern, one clad in a complete set of diamond armor with a white cape bearing the insignia of a golden pickaxe draped around his broad shoulders, the other enshrouded by a flowing black cloak. Streams of white-hot lava spilled from the corners of the cave to collect in a lava pool surrounding the room. Golden fireballs leapt from its depths, fueled by the immense heat, to disappear with a hiss and a puff of smoke upon touching the cold stone. One wall of the cave consisted of layers of impenetrable obsidian; the others were merely stone. A pair of iron doors set in the wall of obsidian was the only exit. Across the room from the iron doors sat an imposing throne of shining diamond and gold blocks atop a section of raised stone.

The first man, the one wearing diamond armor, promptly dropped to his knees before the other man and touched his head to the ground. "My master," he whispered.

The man in the black cloak raised his hand up in a sweeping motion. "Rise, Cragger," he commanded.

Cragger stood up to face the cloaked man. "Great Overlord, the scouts have finally returned. They mapped out the surrounding territory in all directions for precisely 10,000 blocks."

"What did they find? NPC villages? Or, better yet, a _Minecraftian_ village?" the Overlord asked, leaning forward slightly, unable to conceal his almost childish anticipation.

"Jungles, forests, mountains, taigas, deserts, caves, and the likes. Just regular unoccupied biomes, my lord."

"Oh." Cragger detected disappointment in his master's voice and inwardly cringed. "Nothing else? No villages? Not even a single NPC village?"

"Y-yes sir," Cragger stuttered. "I-I mean, no sir, none at all, nothing, absolutely nothing!"

Slowly, almost regretfully, the Overlord ascended the steps to the bejeweled throne and gently sat down, lazily crossing his legs and looking down upon Cragger like a king to his subjects. "Cragger, we both know that out of the hundreds of Oculi I command, none are quite as clever, resourceful, and faithful as you, my loyal second-in-command."

Cragger could sense that something was wrong. Surely the omniscient Overlord had seen through his poorly constructed lies. So why was he being praised? Nevertheless, Cragger could not resist puffing out his chest. Compliments from the great Overlord himself were as unheard of as dancing zombies.

"However, you are still an Oculus, no matter what lofty rank you have attained. That means I am still your leader and your duty is still to serve me. You know that I do not like to be disappointed. In fact, I only accept the best from all of my Oculi, and even that is not enough to repay me for what I have done for you. If I am ever disappointed it means that my Oculi have not done their best. Then I must ensure that no mistakes are made again in the future, and you know what that means."

The Overlord leaned forward in his throne and whispered a single word: "Punishment."

Cragger blanched and began to shake in terror as nightmarish memories that he had tried for so long to bury awakened, memories of others being dragged off, struggling vainly, by solemn-faced guards… Horrible pain-filled screams piercing the air… And new replacements found for them the very next day… Any last ounces of willpower Cragger had retained until then suddenly evaporated, and he found himself gasping, "Please master, great Overlord, please, not the punishment! I—They—"

"Well? What is it? Cough it up now." The Overlord sounded amused at his second-in-command's display of weakness, although Cragger couldn't be certain, for the Overlord's face was completely concealed amid the unnatural darkness of his hood.

"The scouts, they came across a small village in a valley surrounded by a ring of mountains. It's located about 700 blocks to the northwest of the main base. But to get there one must cross huge barren deserts and icy wastelands, as well as impassable mountains and—"

"If a single scout can journey through those biomes, reach the village, and return within a week, then surely the strongest army in all of Minecraft can, and in half the time too. Stop rambling, you fool, and get to the point. How many residents are there? What valuables do they possess? How heavily protected are they from attack? And, most importantly, are they regular dumb villagers or Minecraftians?"

"According to the scouts, the village is home to about twenty or so Minecraftians and a few regular villagers. They have stored enough food to feed them for years. Supposedly, one person lives in a house built entirely of solid gold blocks and another hoards chests filled with stacks of golden apples. However, most of them are experienced warriors."

Upon hearing this, the Overlord rubbed his hands together in excitement. "Perfect. The scouts have done well. Cragger, go get the troops ready. We'll set off for the village in the morning."

"B-but… Overlord, the scouts also discovered a few other villages. They will be much easier to conquer and will also yield satisfactory spoils—"

"What is wrong with you today? First you lie to me about the villages. Now you try to deter me from attacking. Are you forgetting that I am the Overlord, that I am your master? Do you need a reminder in the form of punishment?"

Cragger tried to shrink down into the ground. "Master, I—It's just—My family lives in that village! My wife and our only child! It would break my heart to see them harmed!" The moment he spoke those words he knew he had made a grave mistake.

The Overlord was silent for a minute. Each passing second was torture for Cragger. A thin film of sweat broke out on his face. No doubt the Overlord was planning some dreadful form of punishment that would cause him to wish he had never been born. But when the Overlord finally spoke, it was in a soft tone, like a mother comforting her child.

"I see. You just wanted to protect your loved ones. That is understandable. It is a fundamental part of human nature. I'll take special care to ensure that none of them are killed, just for you."

Cragger couldn't believe his own ears. "Why—why—Thank you, great Overlord, thank you! I can never repay you for this!"

"Oh, there is a way that you can repay me: By leaving and telling the troops to get ready for battle."

The joyful look on Cragger's face was replaced by a perplexed one. "But why? Are we going to conquer one of the NPC villages?"

"No. We'll be attacking the Minecraftian village. Along the way we shall loot and destroy any other villages we come across."

"But… But… You promised that you wouldn't kill my family!"

"Exactly. I won't kill them. I will simply have them enslaved." Upon seeing Cragger's shocked expression, the Overlord burst into mirthless laughter. "Oh, Cragger. Did you really think that I was going to spare them?" The Overlord's voice hardened. "Nothing—I repeat, absolutely nothing—will stop me from reaching my goal. Not you, not a village of warriors, not even Notch. There is nothing that can stop me. I have half a mind to kill you right now for your disloyalty and deceit, but you are my most talented Oculus, and there are none suitable to replace you. Therefore, I shall let you live, but only this once. Now go get out of my sight. I want the army ready by dawn!"

Fearfully, Cragger sprinted towards the obsidian wall as fast as his legs could carry him, pressed a button that opened the iron doors, and exited without looking back. The doors slammed shut mere seconds afterwards, plunging the cave into an ominous silence broken only by the sizzling lava. The Overlord uncrossed his legs, straightened his cloak, and leaned back in his throne as if the meeting had drained him. "I'll be watching you, Cragger," he said to no one in particular. "I'll always be watching. For nothing can stop me from taking my revenge."

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Far away to the northwest, the sun was just beginning to rise over the horizon. As the shadows shrank and the first rays of light touched the beautiful world of Minecraft, the occupants of the aforementioned village were just awakening. Today, everything seemed more vibrant, more breathtaking than usual, from the trees to the waterfalls to the mountains surrounding the village. The cool morning air was simply bursting with life. So, with smiles on their faces, they crawled out of their beds and prepared to start another day.

Little did they know that when the sun set on that same day, life as they knew it would end forever.

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**So what do you think about it? Good? Bad? Boring (Trust me, it'll get better later)? Please leave a review to let me know.**

**P.S. If you look closely enough, you can find a mention of certain people who'll play an important part in the story.**


	2. Chapter 1: Hilarity

**I can't believe how much support this story's gotten already, just from the prologue. Thank you, readers, and here is Chapter 1.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Minecraft, the Youtubers in this story, Squidward, or "Set Fire to the Rain".**

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Chapter 1: Hilarity

**Deadlox**

Indistinct sounds reach my ears; a loud voice; meaningless words; my mind thaws from the numbness of deep sleep. The words sharpen. "De… Lo… Up…" I desperately try to remain asleep again, only to have the voice jolt me into consciousness. "Deadlox! Hey, Deadlox! Wake up! I got a surprise for you!"

My eyes fly open and I am momentarily blinded by the bright sunlight streaming through the window. "Huh—What—Who—" I sputter. My throat feels dry and my headphones have been digging into my ear during the night, leaving painful red marks on the side of my face. Out of the corner of my eye I see a figure standing by my bed and shift my aching neck to scrutinize the intruder through bleary eyes.

It's Sky, grinning from ear to ear, with a headful of tousled dark brown hair, tanned skin, his amulet draped around his neck, a blue cloak with a picture of a golden pickaxe flowing behind him, and a pair of sunglasses perched atop his nose. As usual, his outfit consists of unidentifiable black and gray clothes, similarly colored gloves, and rust-red shoes. "It's about time you woke up."

I rub my eyes and scan the room. Everything looks intact: the windows, the door, the paintings, the crafting table, the furnaces, and, most importantly, the chests in the corner containing all of my items. "How'd you get in?" I croak, although my scratchy throat reduces the question to an unintelligible jumble of raspy syllables.

"What?"

I cough and repeat, "I said, how did you get in my house this time? Through the ceiling, walls, or floor?"

Sky gestures behind him. "I used the front door. Why?"

"Figures. I go through the trouble to set up tripwires, complicated redstone circuits, pressure plates, and dispensers all above, around, and underneath my house to prevent people from getting in, and the next day you manage to break in here again. Didn't I tell you to stop?"

"Why would I stop?" Sky asks. "It's fun seeing you all grumpy. It's not like you're suffering from lack of sleep deprivation. In case you don't know, that means not sleeping enough. I think."

Skeptically, I repeat, "I'm suffering from lack of sleep deprivation? That's two negatives, Sky."

"You're right. It's 'You're not suffering from no lack of sleep deprivation'. No, no, it's 'You're not suffering lack of no sleep deprivation'. That's not right either, is it? It's… It's… It's coming to me… I remember now!" Sky exclaims. "It's 'No, you're not suffering from no lack of nonexistent sleep not-deprivation'! That's it!" He turns to me and begins to recite the phrase. "Deadlox, it's not causing you no suffering of lack of… Wait… No suffering of not… Deprivation not lack… Fudge, I lost it."

"Anyways, why are you here again?" I continue before Sky can reply. "No, let me guess. Is it to show the new piece of butter you found while mining?"

"How did you know?"

"Because you always break in every other morning to do that."

"Oh." Sky pauses to pull out a gold ingot from his pocket and thrusts it into my face proudly. "Well, look at this butter! It's so beautiful, and majestic, and awesome… I feel like I could stare at it forever…"

"Uh-huh. So freaking majestic." I try my hardest to inject obvious sarcasm into my voice and to not go cross-eyed. "It's completely identical to the piece of butter you found last week, and the one before that, and the hundreds before that."

However, Sky doesn't seem to catch on. "I'm glad we agree on its beauty." He pockets the butter quickly, like he's afraid that I'll try to snatch it from his hand. "Anyways, that's not the only reason why I'm here. I have a surprise outside that I made just for you!" Sky stops and waits expectantly. When my only response is to stare at him blankly, his grin fades a bit. "Come on. Ask me!"

"Ask you what?"

"What the surprise is. Duh!"

"Why can't you just tell me?"

"Because then it wouldn't be a surprise."

"But if I ask you, then you would have to tell me anyways."

"No. I wouldn't tell."

"Then what's the point of asking if you're not gonna tell me?"

"So I can laugh and say, 'Ha, I'm not telling!' You'd have to go outside and see for yourself."

"…Sky, sometimes I worry about you."

"Why?"

"Never mind. Now can I go back to sleep?"

"But… But… You have to see what the surprise is!"

"No, I don't. Now leave me alone."

"But you have to see it! I spent hours working on it!"

"I'll take a look when I wake up later, I promise."

"But by then it'll be noon and you'll have to eat lunch and other people will have seen it already and then they'll tell you and ruin the surprise! That's why you have to go out, _now_, to see it!" Sky sounds almost like an obnoxious spoiled child.

I groan, turn away from Sky, and burrow deeper into the warm blankets. "For the last time, I'll see it later. Please just shut up, leave, and let me sleep." To emphasize that this is the end of our conversation I smother my head in the pillow, partially blocking out the string of complaints following that last statement.

Suddenly, Sky stops whining. For a moment I rejoice inwardly, but the joy is cut short when I feel a pair of hands clamp down onto my arm and roughly pull me out of bed. I thrash on the floor like a fish out of water, white sheets threatening to strangle me, until I manage to shove them to the side and scramble to my feet hurriedly. Not amused in the slightest, I cross my arms and tap my foot impatiently, sure that the broad smirk on Sky's face is the exact opposite of the scowl on mine. "Now that you're out of bed you have to go see it!" he exclaims, as if I don't possess the power to simply crawl back into bed.

"Fine," I sigh. "I'm not gonna get any more sleep with you bugging me. You sure this wonderful surprise of yours isn't dangerous?" I ask skeptically.

"Of course not! Who do you think I am, a murderer?"

"Yes," I reply, but he's already left, so I shrug and follow him, wondering what in the world could be so important.

The moment I step outside I hear an ominous clicking sound. I only have time to look down at the pressure plate under my foot before the ground opens up beneath me. My stomach turns as I fall until I hit the ground, knocking the air out of me. Gasping for breath, I realize that I have been dropped into a small underground room, lit by a couple of torches, made entirely of butter blocks. Then loud explosions, combined with the sound of shattering glass, shake the room like a stampede of cows. I stand up and press myself against the wall, hoping that the ceiling doesn't cave in.

The explosions end as quickly as they started, leaving a deathly silence behind. Reassuring myself that I am still alive, I take a step forward… Onto another pressure plate. This time, the wall in front of me shifts, revealing a line of dispensers that begin to pelt me rapidly with snowballs. Eventually I am knocked over, and as I lay on the ground, wiping sludgy snow from my eyes, I hear familiar laughter. _Sky's _laughter.

I look up through the hole that I fell through. Sky is standing right above, doubled over in mirth. When he recovers he drops a few ladders down, which I place on the wall and climb up to face him. "What was that for?!" I demand angrily. His only response is to point at something behind me. With a strange feeling of dread, I turn around—and my jaw promptly drops to my feet at the sight.

A huge smoldering crater now occupies the space where my house used to stand. Burnt shards of wood, stone, and glass litter the ground. Everything—the bed, the crafting table, the furnaces—is gone. I simply stand there, my mouth opening and closing but no words coming forth, while Sky collapses to the ground. "You should see the look on your face!" he laughs.

I finally come to my senses. "My house… Everything is gone…" A new horror dawns upon me. "My chests… All my stuff… My diamonds, my iron, my redstone, my enchanted tools and armor… All gone…" I turn towards Sky, who is rolling around in laughter. "That was the surprise? A pressure plate, rigged to drop me into a hole, blow up my house and all my things? Why…" I trail off and outstretch my hands in dismay.

"It was for the lulz!" is Sky's reply.

"But… But… All of my things! I spent so long trying to get them and now they're all gone!"

"It was for the lulz!" Sky repeats.

"You—You—" I choke, before I give up on talking and instead angrily stalk away, just as the other residents of the village who aren't too lazy to get up begin to gather around to witness the spectacle.

I stomp through town, barely aware of what I'm doing, with no real destination in mind. Rudely, I brush by others and their irritating questions. I only want to be able to fume at Sky in solitude. _How could he do this to me? Doesn't he know how much time I spent collecting my food, tools, and valuables? Or how much time it will take to rebuild my house?_

When some of the blind rage has faded, I realize that I have wandered out of the village and into a small grove of oak trees. I look around to make sure that I am by myself, and then sit down with my back against a tree. _How could Sky be so thoughtless?_ _He didn't say sorry. He didn't even look sorry! He just seems to think it's all one big joke. Would he still feel the same way if somebody blew up _his _house? And why me? Why not MinecraftUniverse or Antvenom or Dawn? Okay, maybe not Dawn since she's already suffered the same fate as me at least twice, but why couldn't he have chosen Antvenom's house? I mean, Ant's been gone for months now._

Just as I begin to calm down by feeling sorry for myself I hear footsteps behind me. I stand up, instinctively reaching for my sword. Then I remember that it was lost along with everything else I owned in the explosions. Peering around the trees, I see a mysterious figure walking towards me and tense up. _Who could it be? _The person steps into the sunlight, revealing black clothes, brown hair, sunglasses, and a very familiar amulet. _It's Sky_, I realize. The very last person in the world that I want to see right now. But Sky has already spotted me and approaches hesitantly._  
_

He clears his throat. "Hey, um, Deadlox. I just… Er, Dawnables—y'know Dawn, right?—She told me to, um, well she said that I should, erm, apologize to you. I'm sorry, er, really sorry for blowing up your house with TNT. But… Um… Well, you still have that underground butter room I built for you. You know, the one you fell into? It's yours, so feel free to take all the butter. And you can live in there too, surrounded by all that butter. So… Yeah." The whole time his eyes dart around everywhere but never meet mine.

Coincidentally, Sky also happens to be the last person in the world that I want to talk to, but I struggle to force words out of my mouth anyways. "You're sorry? You're really sorry?" Sky nods. "Or is it just because Dawn told you to?" Sky switches to frantically shaking his head, but I ignore him and continue. "I bet if she didn't make you say sorry, you wouldn't be. You'd only think of yourself and how hilarious it is that you blew up my house. But of course you assumed that I would be okay with you destroying my house and everything I own. Or maybe you didn't even think of how I would feel afterwards, only how entertaining it would be."

The accusations fly from my mouth as they increase in volume. "You never think of anyone else when you play these types of pranks. Like when you blew up Dawn's house, not once, but twice. When you burned down the entire farm and set all the animals free. When you stole everyone's diamonds and put them into my chests so everyone thought I was the culprit. When you tried to "set fire to the rain" by building a dirt tower in the middle of the village on a rainy day and dropping explosive fire charges everywhere. That time you nearly killed me and set the entire village on fire! And I thought that you had finally learned your lesson, but no, nothing gets through that thick skull of yours. You never realize that the only person who benefits from these tricks is you, that everyone has been barely tolerating your pranks and the trouble they cause, that nobody else finds these things funny! Because it isn't funny! None of it is! Your tricks are annoying and dangerous!"

"But," Sky interjects, "I-I always helped by cleaning up an-and I… I gave butter to everyone. Like that butter room I built for you. And here." He pulls out a piece of butter. "I brought butter for you, to make you feel bette—"

"Butter. It's all about butter. That's all you ever think about, isn't it? Only you and your precious butter, that's what matters to you, not the destruction and pain you cause, not your friends and neighbors. You think that everyone loves butter as much as you do? That everything will be alright, that everyone will forgive you if you give them some butter, that the clouds will go away and the sun will start shining? Because if it is, then there's something seriously wrong with you. You've got your priorities all mixed up, putting you and your butter before everyone else in the village. Does butter feed you? No. Does butter protect you from monsters at night? No. Does butter help gather resources? No. Does butter do anything except sparkle and look pretty? No! It's absolutely worthless and useless, yet you worship it like some kind of messed-up god! Is that all you care about, Sky? Gold? Because if so, then you should just leave now! Gold never did anything to help anybody, and neither did you!"

I fixate my glare on Sky, who is trying to shrink into the ground, and direct all my anger into it. I wait for him to say something in defense but he remains silent, the gold ingot clutched tightly in his hand. Finally, he opens his mouth. "I really was sorry," he says quietly, "But now… Maybe I'm not anymore." Then he turns around and walks away, leaving me simply staring at the flattened patch of grass where he stood a moment ago, listening to his footsteps ebb into silence as he returns to the village. For what seems like hours I stand there, shaking with uncontrollable rage, trying to sort out the conflicting emotions that boil inside of me and pull me in different directions. But a single word, the only clear thought I can grasp, manages to surpass the rest and float above them:

Revenge.

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Far away to the southeast, an unsuspecting village of NPC villagers were doing what they did best: staring at each other, wiggling their Squidward-like heads, trampling their crops, getting stuck/lost/killed, offering extremely unfair trades to rip off the occasional traveler, and generally being stupid. But the peace was destroyed when a massive wave of Minecraftians, each wearing shimmering diamond armor, descended upon the village. The innocent NPCs tried to flee, but all were beheaded by swords, impaled with arrows, or set on fire before they could escape to safety. Cheering, the attackers ripped apart houses and pocketed whatever they found, often fighting tooth and nail amongst themselves. When everything of value had been looted, they set down blocks of TNT throughout the village and blew up the entire settlement, seemingly taking delight from the smoke, ashes, and debris that remained.

Then the army continued towards the north, intent on reaching their destination, as if nothing had ever happened.

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**If you think Deadlox is overreacting to the destruction of his house, I suggest you should watch Sky's "Minepranks" videos on YouTube, in which Dawnables becomes enraged after Sky pranks her by blowing up her house. And that wasn't her real house, so imagine how it must feel for Deadlox.**

**Anyways, please leave a review. Constructive criticism, suggestions, and critiques are just as welcome as praise.  
**


	3. Chapter 2: Envy

**This chapter was hard for me to write. I'm not sure why. But from here on, expect longer periods between chapters, like a week or two or three. The only reason I was able to get chapter 1 out three days after the prologue was because I was nearly finished with that chapter when I uploaded the prologue. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Minecraft, the Youtubers in this story, or Dumbledore.**

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Chapter 2: Envy

**Sky**

"I don't know what to do. Deadlox started yelling at me when I tried to say sorry and Dawn's mad at me too for blowing up his house and for messing up the apology. Now neither of them will talk to me. What should I do?" I ask, looking at MinecraftUniverse, who is walking beside me. I watch the bright midday sun glint off the shiny blue spacesuit he always wears and wait for a response.

"Well…" he replies, turning the yellow visor that covers his face towards me. "You could do... something," he finishes lamely.

"What a _great _idea. Of course I want to do something, but what?"

"You could try apologizing to them," MinecraftUniverse suggests.

"And you think I haven't tried already?!" I snap irritably.

"Dude, calm down. I'm only trying to help. I'm not some wise old magic Dumbledore-type fortunetelling person who knows how to solve everything."

I realize that I'm almost shouting at my friend. "Sorry. It's just that…"

"It's alright," MinecraftUniverse interrupts. "You don't have to explain."

I lapse into silence as we continue walking past houses in different shapes, sizes, and colors, the gravel pathway crunching under our feet. A solid pit of guilt is lodged deep inside my stomach and gloom clouds my dreary thoughts. _I didn't mean to upset anyone. It was just a prank_. But Deadlox's furious rebukes sting the most. _Butter… That's all you ever think about… Something seriously wrong with you… Never did anything to help anybody… _Did he really mean all of those things? Does he hate me that much? Is he—

"Hold on. I have an idea." MinecraftUniverse suddenly says.

"What is it?" I ask, eager for a way to clean up this mess I've made.

"Just because Deadlox and Dawn are both angry at you doesn't mean that you have to be upset. Look at you: staring at the ground and being sad. You shouldn't let it affect you too much. I mean, you shouldn't not care about it at all, and you need to apologize later, but don't let it get you down. Try forgetting about that and thinking about something else."

"Alright then." _Don't think. Don't think about blowing up Deadlox's house. Or Deadlox yelling at me. Or Dawn yelling at me. Or about Deadlox thinking that all I care about is butter. Because I don't. Do I? Do I only care about butter? No, because I'm not as selfish and thoughtless as he said I am._

_ Am I?_

"I don't think it's working," I remark.

"Then I don't know what else to do. Sorry."

So we continue dismally trudging down the path, past more houses and a few people too, though most are back at the place where Deadlox's place used to be. Presently though, I pause in front of a particular house, built of various wooden and stone blocks with a few windows, to read aloud the faded writing on the weathered sign stuck in front of the building. "An—Antv—Anvenom. Antvenom's House. It's getting hard to read this sign." I heave a long, wistful sigh. "He said he'd be back soon on that day when he left to go on adventures and find treasures. But it's been so long and he hasn't come back. No one's seen or heard from him. I knew I should've gone with him. Then maybe he'd be here right now. He'd know what to do about this." I clutch my amulet, exactly the same as the one hanging around Ant's neck, wishing that it has the power to bring my close friend back, alive and well.

"It hasn't been _that_ long since he left," MinecraftUniverse says. "Only about four or five or six months. Don't worry about him. This is Antvenom we're talking about! The winner of three consecutive Survival Games and parkour master! He'll be fine. I bet right now he's going on great adventures and has loads of diamonds and butter apples to bring back. He'll have a bunch of exciting stories about his encounters with monsters. Maybe he's gotten to the End and killed an Enderdragon. Who knows?"

"I hope you're right," I reply absentmindedly, for a thought I can't quite grasp is tugging at the back of my mind. _So many houses… Antvenom's house… Houses… Deadlox doesn't have a house…_

"Of course!" I exclaim excitedly. "Why didn't I think of it earlier? Deadlox is mad at me because I blew up his house and now he doesn't have one. So I can rebuild his house for him!" I grab MinecraftUniverse's arm and half-drag him down the path. "C'mon! We'll go to your place to get supplies. We'll need lots of wooden planks, the oak kind, not jungle or birch, and cobblestone and chests and glass and…"

**Deadlox**

Crouched in an uncomfortable position between a crafting table and a chest, I listen to Sky and MinecraftUniverse's muffled conversation. When I hear them leaving, I release a breath that I've been painfully holding and stand up to stretch out my cramped muscles. Then I cautiously sneak through the house, peering through windows to make sure that nobody is nearby, before returning to the main room. Rows upon rows of dusty chests that have sat untouched for ages line the wooden walls.

Tentatively, I lift the lid of the one closest to me, wincing as it creaks loudly. Inside, hundreds of golden apples are stacked upon each other, each shimmering with a faint purple aura. My stomach growls to remind me that I haven't eaten anything since last night. I quickly grab one of them and am about to take a bite out of it when a voice in my head stops me. _I can't do this. I'm not a thief._

_But Ant's been gone for months now. He'll never notice if a few of his supplies are missing._

_Maybe he will. Then what'll I do?_

_I can always lie. Say that it wasn't me._

_I can't be a thief _and _a liar! Besides, stealing is wrong!_

_He probably isn't coming back anyways. Eventually, people will catch on and start taking his stuff. Better to do it before everyone else._

_What's wrong with me?! I can't steal stuff from him even if he isn't returning._

_But look at those golden apples. Almost all crafted using butter—no, gold—that Sky gave Ant. What did he give me? A giant pit in the ground where my house used to be._

The mere thought of Sky ignites both anger and guilt inside of me. I'm furious at him, but I want to be able to go back in time and reclaim some of the things I said during my outburst. _I should apologize to him. No, I can't, he's the one who should be apologizing to me. But what if he hates me now for what I said? Those terrible, terrible things I said... But he still blew up my house._ Gnashing my teeth in frustration, I suppress the urge to punch something and instead bite down on the golden apple. It tastes so sweet that I devour the rest of it in seconds and feel the golden apple's warmth flow through me, rapidly restoring my strength—and my resolve to finish what I've started.

I open every chest, struck by a pang of envy each time I see one filled to the brim with golden apples, until I discover a chest containing items other than magical fruit. I rummage through stacks of wooden planks, sugar cane, and armor until I find what I'm looking for: TNT. Carefully, I place the bright red blocks inside a large leather sack I brought for this purpose along with a set of almost brand-new flint and steel. Once I've taken what I deem as enough, I close the chest, zip up the bulging bag, look out the windows again to make sure that no one is around, and leave Antvenom's house.

To head towards another house, one made entirely out of bu—gold, not butter, gold—which will be nothing more than a smoldering crater once I've finished with it.

* * *

Not so far away to the southeast, a vast army stopped for a rest in the middle of a sprawling plain. Some of the Minecraftians spent the precious time filling their stomachs. Others spread out in search of mobs to brutally slaughter. Still others simply collapsed upon the grass to take short naps. But one man sat apart from the others in deep thought.

Worried for his family's safety, Cragger had not been able to sleep a wink the previous night, instead tossing and turning in his bed. Then he was forced to organize hundreds of Oculi and set off for the village the next morning, all the while feeling the Overlord's piercing gaze upon him. Even now he was sure he could feel his master watching him, scrutinizing his every movement and maybe even his thoughts, periodically sending icy shivers down his spine. He knew from personal experience that his master possessed strange, otherworldly powers.

Nevertheless, his love for his wife and child surpassed even his mortal fear of the Overlord. He simply had to save them somehow, for even if they were to be enslaved instead of killed, many said that the wretched life of a slave was worse than death. But the way to spare them from hard work and torture eluded him.

Cragger was so lost in thought that another Oculi, this one wearing diamond armor and a black cape depicting an iron pickaxe, approached him and yelled, "Cragger! What are you doing? Twenty minutes have passed since the rest was supposed to end! We're wasting precious time and we need to get to that village as quickly as possible! Get the army moving now!"

Reluctantly, Cragger returned to reality, and the army continued marching north, bringing certain doom to the village and its inhabitants.

* * *

**Things are about to get interesting...**

**Please leave a review, as long as it's not spam, flaming, or trolling. I am welcome to critique and suggestions to make my stories better.**


	4. Chapter 3: Revulsion

**There's something that's been bugging me all week. How should I write the titles of fanfictions? I mean, should they be underlined or italicized or in quotation marks or what? I know that book titles are underlined, but a fanfiction isn't exactly a novel.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Minecraft or the Youtubers in this story.**

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Chapter 3: Revulsion

**Sky**

I carefully stick a sign into the grass that reads "Deadlox's House V2" and take a step back to proudly admire my masterpiece: A new house for Deadlox, grander than his last, built of wooden planks, wood, cobblestone, bricks, colored wool, and glass. Inside, the various rooms contain a comfortable bed, furnaces, crafting tables, item frames, chests, and a couple of paintings. Although I originally intended to build the house by myself, many others decided to pitch in and help me complete the structure in no time. I grin cheerfully, all traces of my previous remorse gone, as I remember the secret tunnel into the house which I hollowed out behind a large painting by the bed. _Now I have a way to get in and out without Deadlox ever knowing._

MinecraftUniverse jogs up to me. "We finished the whole house, Sky, but the chests are pretty much empty except for some dirt and zombie flesh that people didn't want. Deadlox isn't gonna be happy about that."

I reply, "Don't worry. I'm sure he'll forgive me when he sees this new house. But just in case, I should run back to my home to get some stuff for him. You wanna come with me?"

MinecraftUniverse shakes his head. "Nah, I need to go mining. I'm running low on coal and my diamond armor is about to break. By the way, I haven't seen Deadlox all day. Do you know where he is?"

"No, but he's probably sulking somewhere by himself. Once I've gotten the things to put in the chests we can go look for him." Confidently, I head towards my majestic butter house, pausing only to stare down a curious NPC villager, certain that with the aid of Deadlox's new house I can resolve this bitter dispute.

**Deadlox**

Swamped in waves of guilt and uncertainty that are only barely kept at bay by hissing barriers of fiery rage and a thirst for vengeance, I set the last block of TNT down. A layer of explosives covers the but—gold—floor, the golden walls, the ceiling, the chests, the furnaces, the beds, the entirety of Sky's house. Everything that he worked so hard to collect and craft and build, including his precious gold, will all be lost forever, eradicated in white-hot explosions and reduced to handfuls of fine ash.

Gripping the flint and steel tightly in my hands, I pause as two sides of my conscience wage war inside my head. _I can't do this. I can't. I just can't._

_ Yes I can. I can do this._

_ But I'm not that kind of person. I can't destroy all his stuff like that._

_ Sky blew up my house without a second thought and found it hilarious afterwards. I need to teach him a lesson. Then maybe he'll stop playing these dangerous pranks on everyone._

Gradually, I raise the flint and steel until the two pieces are hovering above the nearest block of TNT. Remembering that a single piece of TNT takes exactly four seconds to detonate, I glance anxiously at the wooden door, wondering whether or not I'll have time to escape the resulting explosion. My hands quiver as I press the flint and steel together, willing myself to light the explosives on fire. _Remember that this is for a good cause, Deadlox_.

Just when I've gleaned enough courage, the door swings open as Sky hurtles inside. I freeze. Like a cornered ocelot, unable to move or make a sound, I watch Sky's eyes dart back and forth between me, the dangerous item in my hands, and the TNT lining the entire house. Then they flash back to me. "Wha—" Sky says before the window to my left suddenly shatters.

Instinctively, I squeeze my eyes shut and raise my hands in front of my face. When I open them, the first things I notice are the shards of glass embedded in my arms, blood already welling around them. Then I spot a burning arrow, the one that must've flown through the window, stuck in the floor, ravenous flames already licking at the nearest block of TNT.

"Run!" I shout. But Sky stays frozen in place. A strange choked gurgling sound escapes from his throat, and before I can move he leaps over to the chests in the corner. Flinging open the nearest one, he begins to hastily scoop up armfuls of gold blocks, ingots, and nuggets. "What are you doing?!" I yell. "It's gonna explode!"

Sky doesn't even look up. "I know! I'm gonna lose all my butter!"

Exasperated, I reply, "Forget your precious gold! The TNT's gonna blow _us _up!"

"Then leave, but I'm staying until I save my butter!"

A sharp hissing noise interrupts us as a block of TNT hops briefly into the air and begins to flash rapidly. _Oh no_. I glance at the door—_Can I make it in time?_—and look back at Sky, who is frozen in fear. Despite the panic swelling inside me, I manage to grab Sky's arm and sprint towards the exit, hurtling over explosives and dragging Sky along. _Four seconds, only four seconds_, I remind myself.

Right before I reach the exit, Sky stumbles and trips. Hurriedly, I yank him to his feet and shove him through the doorway. For an instant our eyes meet before I am engulfed in fire.

**Sky**

The force of the explosions knocks me backwards and blinds me momentarily. Pelted with debris and feeling the ground beneath me shake violently, I remain still until the detonations finally subside. When they do, I laboriously get to my feet in a strange daze, shaking my head to stop the loud ringing in my ears, and squint through the dense plumes of smoke. A cool breeze disperses the choking haze to reveal a burning pit in the ground where my house used to be.

_Deadlox. Where's Deadlox?_ Frantically, I search for him. _Did he escape?_ I venture to the edge of the small crater and spot something in its fiery depths.

It's Deadlox. He's lying face down at the bottom of the pit—or, at least, I think he's facing down. It's nearly impossible to pick out fine details from the scorched mass, covered in hideous burns, limbs jutting out from it in impossible positions, and splattered with blood oozing from dozens of open wounds.

I stiffen in shock and horror, unable to believe my eyes. _No. No. No. _A sickening smell of charred flesh makes me gag in repulsion and stumble backwards. _That's not Deadlox. It can't be. He's—he's gotta be somewhere around here_. I raise my eyes, half-expecting to find Deadlox standing nearby, only to see a wall of flaming arrows flying right at me. Quickly, I duck behind a few blocks of grass, hearing the deadly projectiles thudding into the ground around me.

A piercing scream splits the air, followed by what sounds like a battle cry. I look up and immediately wish I hadn't when I spot a massive wave of people wearing diamond armor and waving lethal-looking weapons pouring down from the mountains into the village. _And I thought this day couldn't get any worse_. I remember that my enchanted butter sword and armor have been obliterated in the explosion. _I can't fight them. What do I do?_

Another earsplitting shriek reaches my ears, a very familiar one that chills my blood. "Dawn? Dawn!" I yell, not caring if the attackers hear me. She doesn't reply. "Dawn!" Again, no answer. Icy fear grips my heart. "Stay right where you are, Dawn! I'm coming!" I run towards the center of the village. _Please be alright Dawn, please be alright._

As I dash down the winding path I witness destruction in the form of burning houses being ransacked by invaders; innocent NPCs lying motionless in the grass, blood seeping through their tunics; attackers working together to corner and strike down fellow villagers. A few of them spot me and begin to give chase. I force my aching legs to move faster, heartbeats pounding in my ears and breaths rattling in my chest, all while desperately searching for Dawn. _This was _not _a good idea!_

I turn a corner to find my way obstructed by a trio of Minecraftians who join my pursuers to form a circle around me. A quick glance confirms that there is no way to escape.

"Lookie here, we caught another one," an attacker says. "Now, this next part'll be less painful for all of us if you just cooperate." With a start, I realize that the person is female.

"Never! I'm not going down without a fight," I snarl.

She shakes her head mockingly. "They always say that. Listen, I'm telling the honest truth."

Suddenly, I feint towards the right before lunging at the speaker, but she nimbly steps out of the way and pins me to the ground with her foot. "You'll have to do better than that to defeat an Oculus," she remarks as I writhe about in vain. Then something connects with the side of my head and everything fades into oblivion.

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**See? I told you things would get interesting.**

**Please leave a review if you liked this chapter. Actually, please leave one even if you didn't like it to give me suggestions to improve my writing.**


	5. Chapter 4: Outrage

**How many months has it been since I last updated? April, May, June, July, August, September... Five whole months. Wow. Most of my readers**** have probably marked me off as dead by now.**

**I've got excuses though! Overload of homework, school projects, general end-of-the-year stress, fevers that render me unable to do anything except sit around and watch movies all day, procrastination, lack of motivation, long wi-fi-less vacations, sudden addictions to Transformice and Minecraft, having to rewrite this chapter three times before I was satisfied with the results...**

**That's all. I think. But I'm sure my life's woes utterly bore you heartless bunch, so I'll stop here for the sake of your sanity. You're welcome.**

**Ooh, almost forgot to answer some questions imposed in certain reviews left by readers last chapter.**

**To LunaDiamond: I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you.**

**To Runningwindrocks: NUUUUUUUUUU**

**To CASSIELIKESWAFFLES: :D**

**To Ididntcallyouao: 'Cuz Dumbledore is awesome.**

**To BurningCrab: :D**

**To KxF: Uh...**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Minecraft or the Youtubers in this story.**

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Chapter 4: Outrage

**MinecraftUniverse**

Whistling jauntily, my trusty diamond pickaxe swinging lightly by my side, I follow the trail of torches, their flickering light illuminating the shadowy caverns around me. My backpack bulges with all sorts of goodies: coal, various ores to be smelted, a couple of emeralds to trade with the NPC Villagers, handfuls of potent redstone dust, and, most importantly, about a dozen gleaming diamonds. My mind spins as I imagine all the things I could do with the priceless blue jewels, the envious faces of everyone back at home when I show them the diamonds…

I turn around a corner and am greeted with faint rays of sunlight streaming in from the entrance of the cave. Quickening my footsteps, I practically leap up the last few blocks, bursting with happiness from the spoils of my bountiful mining excursion—and stop dead.

Rows of houses, their windows shattered and their doors smashed in. Bodies and various possessions strewn haphazardly across the ground. The vegetables in the farm that provided our meals trampled and withered. And deadly silence, save the crackling of a smoldering fire rapidly devouring the village.

I just stand there. Stare at the destruction. And stand there. And stare some more. I take a step forward, and another, and then I'm flat-out running, sprinting towards the wreckage, my dreams of diamonds and glory forgotten.

"Hello?" I shout. "Is anyone there?"

There's no answer. I try again, with similar results. My heart sinks.

Pausing at the edge of the flames, my glance falls on one of the bodies. The person seems no older than I am. An ugly gash on his chest still seeps blood, even though his eyes are glazed-over and stare emptily at the sky. One look at the deathly pale face, at the oh-so-familiar purple and white and gray attire, and my stomach twists into an inseparable knot. _Setosorcerer… Not Seto…_

Countless shards of glass litter the grass around him, probably from shattered potion bottles. Nearby, I notice two other bodies, of tough-looking men wearing full sets of diamond armor whom I've never seen before in my life, presumably among those who attacked Seto. Their faces, contorted in expressions of agony, are swollen with infestations of huge painful-looking blisters oozing thick green pus, no doubt side effects of whatever foul-smelling potions Seto had thrown at his attackers. I close my eyes and wince as I think back to when the sorcerer, living up to his name, would hole himself up in his house for days, tinkering with whatever new idea had caught his whim and arrogantly showcasing the results. _He was so proud of his inventions…_

A hollow feeling settling inside me, I hesitantly move on deeper into the ruined town. The farther I go, the more I see, the stronger the urge—no, need—to just turn around and run, and keep running, but something keeps my numbed legs from bolting and my eyes riveted upon the slaughter I pass. Innocent NPC villagers that could never harm a soul, cut down by the scores in their houses. Jerome, thick fur matted with blood, sprawled lifelessly in the grass, BajanCanadian—one of the most skilled fighters of the entire village, and Jerome's best friend—dead by his side. Others, scattered throughout the burning buildings, some complete strangers and some achingly familiar. But not a single survivor.

I stop by a small crater in the ground near the center of town that I'm sure wasn't there before. _What house was here? Wasn't it… _I rack my brain for memories, _Sky's butter house?_ Tentatively, I peer over the edge of the crater and find… nothing, besides few reddish splotches that may or may not be blood staining the bottom of the smoking crater among burnt shards of gold. I don't know if that's a good sign or not.

Right when I exit my house, a movement to my left catches my eye. I tense up and whirl around, expecting fully to be ambushed by a sword-wielding barbarian, only to spot a figure with a headful of short pink and indigo hair kneeling on the ground nearby, with their back facing me. "Dawn! Dawn!" I exclaim.

She doesn't reply until I've rushed to her side. "TrueMU?" Such relief overwhelms my senses that I don't detect the quiver in her voice when she says my name. Her gaze is fixated on something she's clutching in her hand.

"Yeah, that's me," I reply. Dawn looks at me, and that's when I see the tears brimming in her eyes. Puzzled, I glance at the object in her hand—and then the true horror of everything I've just seen comes crashing down.

It's an amulet.

_Sky's _amulet.

* * *

The same pain. The same guilt. The same unanswerable questions and unsolvable problems. An all-devouring, never-ending, circle of doubt and anger and fear. Again, Cragger saw the blood pouring, heard the screams of the dying, each one piercing yet another hole through his already tormented heart. Saw the house, so familiar, reigniting memories from happier days. Saw himself kicking down the door in his wild anticipation. Saw… No one.

His family was not there.

It crushed him. It crushed the hope, as bright as a beacon light, that he'd worked so hard to nurture. It crushed his plans to somehow usher his wife and child to safety, away from the village and its doomed inhabitants, and then escape with them to a place far, far away. It crushed his dreams of returning to the life he'd once led, before everything had gone wrong.

Now Cragger knew that there was no return. What had given him enough strength to last the long, bitter years had crumbled in an instant. Everything he had worked towards, any chances of escaping the horror of being an Oculi, of serving the Overlord, was gone.

No escape.

Cragger trudged forward dispiritedly, trailing at the very end of the group of Oculi. They chatted, they shared tales, they told jokes. He hated them for their merriment, and hated the Overlord for doing this to him, and hated himself for being so weak.

He glanced tiredly at the unconscious young man currently being pulled along in a wooden cart. He had been the only one the Oculi had managed to capture during the attack on the village. The other villagers had all chosen to put up a fight rather than be taken. This prisoner was the only one who had been running for his life rather than fighting. A coward. Cragger knew that there would be no escape from the hell that would define this prisoner's life from now, no escape from the results of his cowardice.

No escape, not for Cragger, not for the prisoner, not for anyone trapped in this never-ending circle.

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**Just realized that no one answered my question from last chapter *pouts***

**Same deal as always, please review, no flames, critiques are appreciated, yadayadayada.**


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